Sony has indicated it is in the midst of creating the follow-up to the PlayStation 4. Speaking in an interview with the Financial Times, company president Kenichiro Yoshida said "at this point, what I can say is it's necessary to have a next-generation hardware," but stopped short of outright saying a PlayStation 5 is in development.
The statement isn't exactly a surprise, given that Sony is constantly thinking about new hardware and another PlayStation is all but guaranteed after the success of the PS4. However, the fact that Yoshida has publicly referenced next-generation hardware and Sony's need for it could be an indication of where the company feels the PS4 is in its life, as well as acknowledgement that a successor is in the works.
The PS4 is five years old now, having been released in 2013 and, traditionally, Sony's platforms have a lifecycle of around six years. This was the gap between the original PlayStation and the PlayStation 2. Six years after the PS2, the PlayStation 3 launched, with the PS4 following seven years after that. However, GPU and CPU technology is advancing at a much quicker rate than ever before, as is internet speed. On top of this, the way content is delivered and consumed has shifted significantly and is on the cusp of doing so again, with advances in game streaming.
Developers, meanwhile, seem to already be thinking about new hardware. At E3 2018 Bethesda announced Starfield, a new game from the team behind The Elder Scrolls. In an interview with GameSpot, Bethesda Game Studios' creative director Todd Howard said that the team is thinking about the best way to realise its vision for Starfield and, should it be necessary, will forego releasing it on PS4 and Xbox One to achieve this. Bethesda also confirmed a new Elder Scrolls title was on the way at E3 2018. However, it didn't mention what platforms it is being developed for.
Bethesda is one of the studios that has been briefed on Sony's plans. Marketing executive Pete Hines said in September that he knows "some stuff" about new hardware, both from Sony and Microsoft, but didn't provide any further insight.
Furthermore, CD Projekt Red has been coy about what platforms Cyberpunk 2077 will be available for. By all accounts, the slice of gameplay it has shown feels next-gen, especially if it that level of quality is going to be extrapolated into a bigger open-world.
Although there are no further details from Sony on its next-generation hardware, citing "people in the games publishing industry with knowledge of Sony's plans for a future console" the Financial Times says it "might not represent a major departure from the PS4, and that the fundamental architecture would be similar."
In May 2018, Sony's head of PlayStation, John Kodera, said the company "will use the next three years to prepare the next step, to crouch down so that we can jump higher in the future." This would mean new hardware would arrive in 2021 at the earliest.
To date there have two revisions on the original PS4 model. Although the PS4 Slim packed the same hardware in a smaller form factor, the PS4 Pro featured beefier hardware to support 4K output. Microsoft, meanwhile, has released the same number of revisions, with the Xbox One, Xbox One S, and Xbox One X.
For its part, Microsoft is making moves towards diversifying where its games can be played. Although it currently enables some games to be played on Xbox One and PC through its Xbox Play Anywhere program, the newly announced Project xCloud will push further into mobile devices. New gaming hardware from Microsoft is pretty much a given, much like a new PlayStation is, but as of yet Microsoft has not indicated when it wants to launch a new platform.
In November, Microsoft will host XO18, an event described as a "global celebration of all things Xbox." It may be that we get further insight into its plans there.
It's a new week, which means GameStop has a fresh set of deals on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch games and hardware. So if you've been meaning to upgrade your console, add a new controller to your setup, or trade in a stack of old games for new ones, we've got all the information you need below. Just note that these deals end on October 16.
It's Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 week (it launches October 12), so naturally GameStop has some deals to encourage you to pick it up. This week all Call of Duty collectibles and apparel like shirts and hats are on sale for 20% off. And if you have any of these games to trade in, you're guaranteed to get at least $20 toward Black Ops 4 or any other new game or pre-order.
Available October 15 is the (deep breath) Xbox One X Robot White Special Edition Fallout 76 Early Pick Up Bundle. It's a special white edition of the console, and it comes with a matching white controller. Also included is a download code for Fallout 76 (playable on November 14) and access to the Fallout 76 beta starting October 23. You can pre-order it here for $500.
If you're interested but could use help getting the money together, you can trade in any modern system to get up to $300 toward an Xbox One X. Also available for pre-order is the white special edition of the Elite Xbox One controller. In other news, last-gen games are Buy 2 Get 1 Free, and Pokemon fans can drop in to their local GameStop to get a free code for the Mythical pokemon Zeraora in Ultra Sun or Ultra Moon.
In terms of game deals, there's not much we haven't been seeing at other retailers in recent weeks, but that doesn't mean you won't find anything worth buying. Destiny 2: Forsaken Legendary Edition comes with every piece of content released for this massive game so far, and it's on sale for $40. For Honor's huge, free Marching Fire update launches October 16, and you can pick up the game for just $20 right now. And if you've been meaning to check out the Yakuza series, a number of entries are on sale this week, including Yakuza 6: The Song of Life - Essence of Art Edition for $40.
You'll find more deal highlights below, or you can click over to GameStop's sale page for the full list of this week's discounts.
Not long after being fired from his role on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, director James Gunn has found himself with a job at Marvel rival DC. Gunn has been confirmed as the writer of a new Suicide Squad movie, and shortly after the news broke, one of his Guardians stars has expressed interest in working on the film.
Dave Bautista, who plays Drax in the Guardians series, tweeted an article about Gunn's new role. He stated simply: "Where do I sign up!" Just who he could play is anyone's guess, though King Shark is a popular idea among some here at GameSpot.
It's possible Bautista was only expressing interest in watching the movie, but he has been extremely supportive of Gunn since Disney fired him over tweets from a decade ago. While the full cast of stars released a letter in support of Gunn, Bautista has been particularly outspoken on the subject. He's even said he wants to be let out of his contract if Gunn's Guardians 3 script isn't ultimately used.
Where do I sign up! James Gunn Boards 'Suicide Squad 2' To Write And Possibly Direct – Deadline https://t.co/OwdDbAm1Ks
Guardians 3 was set to begin production early next year ahead of a 2020 release, but the movie has been put on hold indefinitely, according to previous statements from Bautista. Gunn, meanwhile, just saw his new horror movie delayed.
There's no word yet on what the new Suicide Squad will look like, nor whether it will be a direct sequel to the maligned 2016 film. It was at least previously set to be directed by The Accountant's Gavin O'Connor, although an io9 report suggests Gunn could direct the movie in addition to writing it.
Update: When reached for comment, Warner Bros. told GameSpot, "It is confirmed that James Gunn is writing the next installment of the Suicide Squad franchise." That means it's no longer a possibility, but Gunn has indeed signed on to write the next Suicide Squad movie. It remains to be seen whether he will also direct the project, though it was reported that is a distinct possibility.
Furthermore, Guardians star Dave Bautista has seemingly expressed interest in starring in Gunn's new movie. Just what role he'd play (or if this was even his intention) remains to be seen, but Bautista has been a vocal supporter of Gunn since Disney fired him. The original story follows.
It looks like Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn has found his rebound relationship after being dumped by Marvel Studios. It's being reported that Gunn is in talks to jump to Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment, where he would write and possibly direct the next Suicide Squad movie.
The news comes from io9, which is reporting that Warner Bros. has confirmed discussions with Gunn. The plan, at this point, is for him to write the sequel "with an eye to direct." According to io9, the man behind Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 and 2 will have "a completely new take on the property."
This all comes after Gunn was fired by Marvel Studios from helming the third Guardians of the Galaxy film, after a series of old tweets resurfaced. Thus far, Disney, which owns Marvel Studios, has not announced a replacement director for Gunn or whether it will use the script he'd already written for the movie. However, star Dave Bautista (Drax) has publicly said if the script isn't used, he would ask to be released from his contract.
The tweets in question were from nearly a decade ago, in which Gunn made jokes about rape and pedophilia. Though Gunn had previously apologized for the messages and did so when they resurfaced, Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn said in a statement, "The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James' Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio's values, and we have severed our business relationship with him."
Since then, the entire Guardians cast has signed a public letter supporting their director, while the third installment in the franchise has been put on hold indefinitely, according to Bautista. The film was reportedly scheduled to start production in early 2019, with a projected release in 2020.
Gunn joining the project will likely mean an even longer wait for Suicide Squad 2, though there was very little indication of when fans would see the movie anyway. It was reported over a year ago that The Accountant director Gavin O'Connor would helm the film, but there's been no real news since then.
In the meantime, a new Joker film, starring Joaquin Phoenix, has gone into production, while Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn is set to appear in a Birds of Prey movie. Now, with Gunn potentially taking on Suicide Squad 2, DC's villains could be in good shape for the coming years.
You may have read a lot about Assassin's Creed Odyssey leading up to its release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The new open-world game has finally arrived, and below, we've rounded up all of the essential information about the series' latest entry in one place. We'll run down many of Odyssey's broader features and go through the basics of what you should know before jumping in. Everything from story to combat tips are outlined below, along with links to more detailed guides if you wish to dig deeper. Note that there are no major story spoilers in this article.
You're probably aware that Assassin's Creed Odyssey takes place in Ancient Greece, but it specifically covers the Peloponnesian War fought between Athens and Sparta. The game opens with a 300-esque battle scene where you take control of King Leonidas of Sparta during the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE, then transitions to the start of the main protagonist's story almost 50 years later in 431 BCE.
Greece makes for some breathtaking views.
If you've followed Odyssey since it was first revealed at E3 2018, then you'll know that you can choose between taking on the role of a female or male lead; Kassandra and Alexios are two sides of the same coin and play exactly the same--the main differences are, of course, the voice acting and character model. Your choice also affects the narrative slightly; whoever you choose to play as is made to be the older sibling of the two. You come from Spartan lineage, but the game doesn't force you into aligning with either side of the war since you're a mercenary trying uncover the truth of your family's disappearance.
Prominent Greek figures like Socrates and Hippocrates make appearances throughout Odyssey, and you can interact with them as they offer side quests of their own. While historical fiction has always been the foundation of Assassin's Creed lore, it's never been afraid to incorporate the supernatural. Odyssey takes it a step further by pitting you against mythology itself; one example is a fight against Medusa where you try to avoid getting turned into stone.
Catch Up On Assassin's Creed Lore
This is a long-running franchise, but Odyssey can be a good point to jump into the series. Knowledge of previous events isn't necessarily required to enjoy the new game. However, if you need a refresher on the everything that have taken place up to this point, be sure to read our Assassin's Creed story summary.
How Long Is Odyssey?
It shouldn't come as a surprise that Assassin's Creed Odyssey is huge--its open world is about twice as big as Origins. That may not seem as daunting when you consider the fact that the Mediterranean Sea makes up a large portion of the map and that you'll spend plenty of time sailing the high seas. Regardless, there's still a great deal of ground to cover throughout Greece's mainland and several islands.
As for game length, it's difficult to get an accurate range since every player will engage in a varying number of optional quests and activities along the way. Estimates have been around 50 hours to complete the main story and a decent chunk of side activities. GameSpot editor Alessandro Fillari spent 60 hours with the game for the purposes of his review, and there remain more optional content for him to take part in.
New to the franchise is Exploration Mode. Instead of having waypoints and objective markers littered on screen in the traditional Guided Mode, Exploration Mode puts the onus on you to figure out where to go to complete quests. This means you'll have to pay closer attention to NPC dialogue and investigate the environment more closely.
This is especially true if you take on the optional quest to hunt down a cultist organization. They're a web of mysterious figures with hidden identities scattered throughout Greece and you'll need to do investigative work to locate and assassinate them. Sometimes, you'll happen to take them down in the midst of a side mission that they're involved in, but you'll often have to dig for clues on their whereabouts whether or not you've activated Exploration mode.
Fighting With Style
Odyssey builds off of Origins' combat system, but it introduces some key changes. Shields are no longer an option, which naturally pushes fights towards a faster pace. The skill tree remains divided in three categories attributed to specific playstyles (Hunter, Warrior, and Assassin), but it features some neat new abilities. You may think the Spartan Kick is in the game just for kicks and giggles until you realize that it's super effective for booting enemies off cliffs or creating space in fights. Another setting-appropriate ability is the Rush Assassination that lets you put the Spear of Leonidas to use during long-distance stealth kills.
The skill tree includes several abilities that allow you to tinker with different character builds.
In addition to multiple types of melee weapons (like polearms, swords, and maces), you have a bow that's both useful for attacking long-range and inflicting status effects on enemies. The Arrow Master skill unlocks arrows that can poison, paralyze, or explode on impact, opening up numerous possibilities in combat; combine that with Devastating Shot and your projectiles will be even stronger. The skill tree can be overwhelming at first, but we have a few tips on some good abilities to pick up early and how to use them in clever ways.
Don't worry about min-maxing in the skill tree; you can respec at any time for small cost. This affords you the opportunity to experiment with different combat approaches and character builds.
Setting Sail In The Mediterranean
With multiple islands scattered across Greece, great emphasis is placed on sailing and ship combat in Odyssey, essentially taking a page out of Black Flag's book. Engaging with hostile ships will have you firing arrow barrages, tossing waves of javelins, or using the naval ram to inflict damage. Once an enemy ship's health is depleted, you can either sink it for a small reward or board it with your crew to get better loot. If you board the ship, you'll have to get your hands dirty and fight the opposing crew.
Enemy ships vary in size, health, and strength, so be sure to know what you're up against before engaging. Throughout Odyssey, you'll upgrade your ship and recruit shipmates from quests or smooth dialogue interactions. Different crew members offer specific bonuses and attributes for your ship.
Play Your Part
Odyssey doubles down on RPG elements. There's leveling up, skill trees, gear scores, and numerous optional quests, which was implemented in Origins, but the series dips its toes into branching story threads for the first time. Dialogue trees permeate character interactions and you'll face consequences for your actions whether they be good or bad. The way you decide to complete some quests will affect the resulting narrative and can also spill into the details of other quest-lines; don't be surprised if there are unforeseen consequences and collateral damage.
With branching dialogue comes romance options. You're free to romance as many of the available characters as you want, and the circumstances for which you can romance them may change based on other decisions. Most often, these partners will become part of your ship's crew, which may be a bit of an unceremonious conclusion for love interests. However, these scenarios can play out strangely, and you can see for yourself how romance can feel awkward or forced.
By nature of being an RPG that deals with choice and consequence, there are multiple endings in Assassin's Creed Odyssey; nine to be specific. Unfortunately, you'll be hard-pressed to see them all in one playthrough since key decisions early in the game will affect the possible endings open to you.
You now have more agency in how the story plays out thanks to branching dialogue and quest decisions.
Different Versions, Special Editions, And DLC
Assassin's Creed Odyssey is out soon, but you can still snag the pre-order bonuses offered. Pre-ordering from the Ubisoft Store grants you access to the Blind King mission, Best Buy gifts you a $10 rewards certificate, and GameStop includes the Blind King mission and a Spartan helmet keychain. Aside from the standard edition of the game, there's a Deluxe edition ($80) that includes an XP and drachmae (in-game money) boost, the Kronos and Herald of Dusk gear pack, and the Capricornus naval pack. The Gold edition ($110) packs the DLC season pass, Secrets of Greece and Blind King bonus missions, and lets you start playing now. The Ultimate edition ($120) includes all the aforementioned content from both the Deluxe and Gold editions. There are few other special editions with collector's statues that you check out in our pre-order guide.
PC Minimum And Recommended Specs
For the PC players out there, make sure your system is powerful enough to run the game properly. If you're aiming for 4K resolution with High settings, Ubisoft recommends a system with at least an AMD Ryzen 1700X or Intel Core i7-7700 CPU, AMD Vega 64 or Nvidia GTX 1080 video card, and 16GB of RAM. For those not doing 4K, be sure to read up on the minimum and recommended PC specs to run AC Odyssey smoothly.
Review
You can read or watch our review of Assassin's Creed Odyssey right now; editor Alessandro Fillari concluded: "Assassin's Creed Odyssey's ambition is admirable, which is reflected in its rich attention to detail for the era and its approach to handling the multi-faceted narrative with strong protagonists at the lead. While its large-scale campaign--clocking in at over 50 hours--can occasionally be tiresome, and some features don't quite make the impact they should, Odyssey makes great strides in its massive and dynamic world, and it's a joy to venture out and leave your mark on its ever-changing setting." For perspectives from other critics on the game, you can read through our review roundup.
WWE 2K19 is currently available worldwide; it is the latest entry in an annual franchise, and it contains a massive roster: 200+ wrestlers across Raw, Smackdown, and NXT, and Legends from years past. MyCareer mode has returned, with voice acting from WWE Superstars. There's a new "payback system," meant to simulate those classic WWE matches, where the underdog, in one magnificent burst of energy, gains the upper hand.
For the current U.S. champion, Shinsuke Nakamura, it's all very impressive--the appearance, the moveset, and the more subtle movements are all accurate. And although Nakamura didn't do any of the motion capture work himself, he approves of his stand-in's mimicry.
"Every wrestler wants to be a part of a video game, so it's incredible," said Nakamura in an interview with Gamespot. "It looks very realistic."
This is actually Nakamura's third appearance in the game; he debuted in WWE 2K17. His digital avatar's current rating, on a 100-point scale, is 87, which places him on the same level as Randy Orton and Finn Balor (Demon form), but below other wrestlers like Seth Rollins (88) and Samoa Joe (88).
"I want to be higher," Nakamura laughs. "But it's all about the [individual] player, right? It's all about the skill. So hopefully, next year, I'll be higher."
Nakamura's in-ring archrival, AJ Styles, is WWE 2K19's cover athlete and has an overall rating of 91. Over the course of their wrestling careers, Nakamura and Styles have fought each other seven times. Styles is thus far the victor by a slim margin; he's won three matches, lost two matches, and drawn two more. Nakamura acknowledges his in-ring chemistry with the current WWE Champion; he values narrative over complexity for its own sake.
"We both have a lot of experience," said Nakamura. "Wrestling a match is telling a story, so I don't do anything too complicated. I keep it simple."
Video games were a part of Nakamura's childhood. One of his first exposures to video games was in elementary school, when his sister bought Super Mario Bros. But one of his favorite games foreshadowed his lifelong passion for professional wrestling.
"Right before middle school, I got my first wrestling video game called Fire Pro Wrestling," said Nakamura in an interview with Gamespot. "I was really into it at the time. Human Entertainment would release a new Fire Pro Wrestling every December, so I bought it every year."
"I don't play [games] much [today], but some wrestlers bring their video games, and sometimes, very rarely, I play," continued Nakamura. He pauses, and laughs again. "Console video games these days are too complicated for me, because I have to use all my fingers!"
The Fallout 76 beta is set to kick off on October 23 on Xbox One, but you may be able to put the game through its paces even sooner. Bethesda has announced that before the beta launches, some Xbox Insiders will be able to take part in a limited stress test to help the studio prepare for the beta launch.
Participants for the stress test will be chosen from a pool of players who have both pre-ordered Fallout 76 for Xbox One, and who are also members of the Xbox Insider program. Fulfilling those two criteria doesn't guarantee you a spot, but it does put you in the running. Starting on October 13, you can check if you've been given access to the stress test by looking at the Insider Content tab of the Xbox Insider program.
This all comes with a few caveats. This is for North American players only, and you'll need to be an Xbox Live Gold member as well since it's an online game. Participants will be under an NDA, and your progress in the stress test won't be saved. The beta version set to launch later this month is an entirely separate application. You also can't earn any Achievements.
If those sound like deal-breakers, and you've pre-ordered the game anyway, you may be better off waiting for the full beta. It will start on October 23 on Xbox One and follow on PC and PS4 a week later on October 30. Even if you've pre-ordered the game, though, you may not necessarily get into the test the moment it starts. Bethesda is planning to send invites out in waves, with a relatively small number invited to begin. You can read more details about how and when it will roll out in our beta guide.
The Xbox Insider program is a free option for Xbox One owners that gets you into some early software tests for upcoming firmware, to offer feedback. You can find more instructions through the official site.
Nintendo's new paid service for online play, Nintendo Switch Online, debuted in September, and with it came a bunch of original NES games available only to subscribers on Nintendo's newest console. One of those games was the much beloved The Legend of Zelda from 1987, and this month a special save has been released for the game; one that lets you live "the life of luxury" in Hyrule.
The new Legend of Zelda save lets you play the original armed with tons of Rupees and items from the start. If you choose to, you can now start the game with equipment like the White Sword, the Magical Shield, the Blue Ring, and the Power Bracelet, along with lots of buying power to get even more items nice and early into your journey. Nintendo says it's the first of many special editions of NES games to come; it will be releasing more save data to offer "fun new entry points into fan-favorite games." The Switch Online version of the game also allows you
While the Rupees and items will make the game easier from the start, Living the Life of Luxury can also make the game harder. Once you beat Ganon, you'll be able to play through a more difficult version of the game called Second Quest. Like all of the NES games released through Nintendo Switch Online, The Legend of Zelda also comes with new multiplayer capabilities. In this case, you'll be able to share your screen with another player and swap out who's controlling Link.
Alongside Fortnite's 6.02 update, developer Epic Games has dropped in a few new cosmetics to the game, and some accompanying challenges that will unlock a special Back Bling. On the skin side, it's a popular returning outfit that comes just in time for Halloween season.
The in-game shop now has the Skull Trooper (Male) and Skull Ranger (Female) skins. The former is 1500 V-Bucks, while the latter is 1200 V-Bucks. The Skull Trooper is a returning skin, except this time it can be customized to have a white or green. Those that already had the Skull Trooper skin can also pick a purple look. The Skull Ranger, meanwhile, is completely new.
On top of those to there's the Skull Sickle Harvesting Tool, which will set you back 1200 V-Bucks, and the Crypt Cruiser Epic Glider for 1200 V-Bucks. However, if you want that Ghost Portal Back Bling you'll have to do five challenges. In the tweet below you can see a character outfitted with all the new goodies. Notice that the new Back Bling emits ghostly apparitions of other skins, which is pretty cool.
Patch v6.02 is available now with a return from beyond the grave! The Skull Squad Gear is available now. Complete challenges to earn the Ghost Portal Back Bling. pic.twitter.com/Yy5B0MDO32
Although the challenges for the Back Bling are going to be quite a time investment, you'll also get some experience points and Battle Stars along the way. You can see the challenges, as well as the new cosmetics, below.
Skull Trooper Challenges
Complete 7 Daily Challenges (7)
Play Matches (50)
Play matches with at least one elimination (14)
Search 10 chests in a single match (10)
Deal damage to opponents in a single match (1000)
These won't be the only new challenges for the week, as the usual weekly set is expected to arrive tomorrow, October 11. While we'll have to wait until then to see exactly what players will need to do to get their hands on the Battle Stars, leaks have provided some indication of what the challenges may be.
Click image to view in full screen
Fortnite Update 6.02, meanwhile, adds a new Limited-Time Mode called Disco Domination to the game. In this, players travel to dance floors around the map and then, as you can probably guess, dance. This raises a disco ball over the dance floor, which, when it reaches the top, indicates a floor has been captured. In turn a progress bar appears and the first team to reach 100 percent capture stat on this bar wins. You can find out more about Disco Domination, as well as the new Quad Launcher weapon, in the Fortnite 6.02 patch notes.
If you ever wanted to change your PSN Online ID on your PS4 but were frustrated at the lack of ability to do so, there is some good news on the horizon. Sony has announced it will be testing a new feature that allows you to change your name. The much-requested PSN Online ID Change feature is currently entering PlayStation's Preview Program.
As of now, the feature will only be available to PlayStation users that have registered as testers for previous PS4 system software betas. For those that do get access, you'll be able to do your first change for free. Changes after that will cost $10 USD/CAD / €9.99 / £7.99. For PlayStation Plus members, it will cost $5 USD/CAD / €4.99 / £3.99 after the first change.
To make the change, authorized users can access the feature through the Settings menu or via the Profile page of your PS4. You'll also get the ability to display your previous PSN ID alongside your new one (so your friends can recognize you). This is a choice users will have to make; once you decide to display your old ID or not, you won't be able to change this.
Another caveat is that the new feature won't be compatible with all games. It will be compatible with PS4 games released after April 1, 2018, and "the majority of the most-played PS4 games" released before this date. PlayStation is making it clear not all PS4, PS3, and PS Vita games are guaranteed to support the feature, so users might see issues or errors in certain games. If you run into any issues with the change, PlayStation will let you revert back to your old ID free of charge.
The preview program is set to go until the end of November 2018, and PlayStation has plans to roll it out for all PS4 players in early 2019. At that time, a full list of compatible games (those published before April 1, 2018) will be released.
Although Sony has announced development on several Spider-Man spin-off movies over the past year, the future of this latest superhero universe was very dependent on the success of Venom. After all, the failure of last year's The Mummykilled Universal's planned classic monster universe before it even started. Luckily, Venom has proved to be a box office smash, ensuring that more movies featuring characters from Spidey comic books are on the way.
A movie focusing on Morbius the Living Vampire was first announced back in November 2017, and it has now been confirmed that the film will start shooting soon. In an interview with Collider, Sony producers Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach revealed that they plan to start production in February 2019.
In addition, Arad and Tolmach confirmed that Jared Leto will star in the movie. It was reported that Leto would play the role back in June, but this is the first time that the studio has confirmed his involvement. In the interview, Arad spoke about how important it was to have an actor with the stature of Leto or Venom's Tom Hardy involved.
"This is the great thing for us now, that an actor like him, and an actor like Tom wanted to have their own character," he said. "The character they love. Both of them, [they're] very hard to get them to do a movie. You actually cannot get them. We went in, we sat with them, and everybody told us, 'Oh, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba.' Nothing. [But] that's what [they] wanted to do."
Arad and Tomnach were also asked if the Morbius film would have a PG-13 rating like Venom or would deliver the R-rated version of the story that many older fans might want to see. While they didn't answer this directly, they didn't rule out future movies in their Spider-universe carrying the stronger rating.
"It depends on the story," Arad said. "If the success of the story depends on being R-rated, then, of course, we can do it. But at least for me, I have grandkids, kids, whatever, all these things, and some of these movies, they're dying to see."
The Morbius movie will be directed by Daniel Espinosa, who previously helmed the sci-fi horror movie Life and the Denzel Washington thriller Safe House, with the screenplay by Lost In Space's Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama. The film doesn't yet have a release date, but an early 2019 production start means we are unlikely to see it before 2020.
We're now well into the new month, which means media giant Netflix is releasing a plethora of new content on its streaming service. Starting on the first of October, new movies, TV series, and Netflix originals will continue trickling out onto the service, with new content being added pretty much daily. It can be a lot to go through, but don't worry, we will be highlighting some choice picks for you to check out.
Returning for a second season is the adult animated comedy Big Mouth. Comedians Nick Kroll and John Mulaney star as two adolescent boys going through puberty. The raunchy series has the duo trying to understand life, girls, and everything else while dealing with hormone monsters and uncomfortable moments in early sexuality. It's out now.
Speaking of returning Netflix originals, Castlevania comes back for a second helping on October 26. The series follows Trevor Belmont as he fights the evil forces of Dracula. Season 1 writer Warren Ellis returns, picking up on the huge cliffhanger from last year with Alucard. This season will add more episodes for a total of eight, doubling up from Season 1's four.
As far as movies and television go, October 1 saw Netflix release most of its content. Out of everything that hit that day, you'll want to watch/rewatch the classic '80s adventure movie The NeverEnding Story or the first rated-R Marvel movie that matters--sorry, Dolph Lundgren's The Punisher--Blade. Additionally, Blade II will be available as well. Also, Season 4 of Gotham is coming to Netflix as well, and you can see just how crazy this series has become for yourself.
Sadly, there are a few great items leaving the service as well. The fantastic comedy series Freaks and Geeks left on October 1, along with Sin City and The Lost Boys. Even though Halloween is right around the corner, The Babadook is headed out on October 14 and V/H/S 2 leaves on October 24.
Check out the complete list of everything coming and going from Netflix below, and if you're looking for more news from streaming services, we have complete October arrivals lists from Hulu and Amazon Prime Video as well.
Here's what's coming to Netflix in October
Available October 1
Angel Eyes
Anger Management
Billy Madison
Black Dynamite
Blade
Blade II
Blazing Saddles
Empire Records
Gotham: Season 4
Kevin Hart: Laugh at My Pain
Kevin Hart: Seriously Funny
Must Love Dogs
My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Rollercoaster of Friendship
Mystic River
New York Minute
Once Upon a Time in America
Pay It Forward
Pee-wee's Big Adventure
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
Rumble in the Bronx
She's Out of My League
Sommersby
The Dead Pool
The Devil's Advocate
The Green Mile
The Lake House
The NeverEnding Story
The Shining
V for Vendetta
Zack and Miri Make a Porno
Available October 2
Joe Rogan: Strange Times-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
MeatEater: Season 7-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Monty Python: The Meaning of Live
Monty Python's Life of Brian
Available October 3
Truth or Dare (2017)
Avail. 10/4/18
Creeped Out-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
The Haunting of Molly Hartley
Violet Evergarden: Special: Extra Episode
Available October 5
Big Mouth: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Dancing Queen-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Élite-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Empire Games-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Little Things: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Malevolent-- NETFLIX FILM
Private Life-- NETFLIX FILM
Super Monsters Save Halloween-- NETFLIX FILM
Super Monsters: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
The Rise of Phoenixes-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL (Streaming Every Friday)
YG Future Strategy Office-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 6
Little Things: Season 1
Available October 8
Disney's Sofia the First: Season 4
Mo Amer: The Vagabond-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 9
Terrace House: Opening New Doors: Part 4-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 10
22 July-- NETFLIX FILM
Pacto de Sangue-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 11
Salt Fat Acid Heat-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Schitt's Creek: Season 4
Available October 12
Apostle-- NETFLIX FILM
Errementari: The Blacksmith and the Devil-- NETFLIX FILM
Feminists: What Were They Thinking?-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
FightWorld-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
ReMastered: Who Shot the Sheriff-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Tarzan and Jane: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
The Boss Baby: Back in Business: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
The Curious Creations of Christine McConnell-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
The Haunting of Hill House-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
The Kindergarten Teacher-- NETFLIX FILM
Available October 15
Octonauts: Season 4
The Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of The Commandments-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 16
Ron White: If You Quit Listening, I'll Shut Up-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 19
Accidentally in Love-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Ask the Doctor-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Best.Worst.Weekend.Ever.: Limited Series-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Derren Brown: Sacrifice-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Distrito salvaje-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Gnome Alone-- NETFLIX FILM
Haunted-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Hip-Hop Evolution: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Illang: The Wolf Brigade-- NETFLIX FILM
Larva Island-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Making a Murderer: Part 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Marvel's Daredevil: Season 3-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
The Night Comes For Us-- NETFLIX FILM
Wanderlust-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 21
Robozuna-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 23
ADAM SANDLER 100% FRESH-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 24
Bodyguard-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 25
Great News: Season 2
Available October 26
Been So Long-- NETFLIX FILM
Castlevania: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Dovlatov-- NETFLIX FILM
Jefe-- NETFLIX FILM
Shirkers-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Terrorism Close Calls-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 27
Girl from Nowhere-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Available October 28
Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL (Streaming Every Sunday)
Available October 30
Fate/EXTRA Last Encore: Illustrias Geocentric Theory-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
Netflix's Witcher series is starting to come into focus as the preliminary details continue to be locked down. The latest news from the show is that actors have been cast to portray Ciri and Yennifer, two characters with important roles in the upcoming show's storyline.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the series' showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich revealed that Freya Allan (Into the Badlands) will play Ciri, while Anya Chalotra (Wanderlust) will take on the role of Yennifer. The two join a cast headed up by Henry Cavill (Mission Impossible: Fallout), who plays the witcher himself, Geralt of Rivia.
Freya Allan (Ciri), left, and Anya Chalotra (Yennifer), right. Via Netflix.
The character of Ciri is the Princess of Cintra, and she will play a key role in the plot of the show. Yennifer is a sorceress who acts as a mother figure to Ciri and is the main love interest for Geralt.
Word of Ciri's casting has been a point of contention for Witcher fans. When a rumor began swirling that the show was seeking a woman of color to portray Ciri, the backlash on social media was so furious that Hissrich, the showrunner, ended up taking a break from Twitter.
She tweeted, "It's time for a Twitter hiatus. The love here is amazing, and the hate is enlightening, like a real-life Trial of the Grasses, except I HAVE to read less and write more -- or we won't have a damn finale. Be back soon with more insight and more Roach. Be nice to each other, okay?"
In the THR interview, Hissrich had this to say about the incident: "Truthfully, the controversy about Ciri, my own politics or the fact that I'm a woman, to me, just interacting with the fans has helped an enormous amount, because they see I'm on their side."
The Witcher will run for eight episodes and is based on the fantasy novels written by Andrzej Sapkowski, which also serve as the basis for the popular video games of the same name. While the show was announced back in May, it's not expected to land on the streaming service until 2020.
Although the 1976 boxing classic Rocky and its sequels gave Sylvester Stallone considerable success, it was also his other series--the Rambo movies--that helped make him one of the biggest Hollywood stars of the 1980s. It's been a decade since 2008's Rambo, the confusingly-titled fourth film in the series, was released, but production is now underway on the fifth entry in the action franchise. The movie's title has now been revealed.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, it will be titled Rambo 5: Last Blood, which is a reference to the first film in the series, 1981's First Blood. Stallone also posted a new image from the movie to Instagram, which shows John Rambo in his "man cave." Check it out below:
A post shared by Sly Stallone (@officialslystallone) on
THR also stated that the movie will see Rambo "take on the Mexican drug cartels after the daughter of one of his friends is kidnapped." Spanish star Paz Vega (Spanglish, The OA) has also joined the cast, and will play "Carmen Delgado, a reporter who covers the Mexican drug trade and teams up with Rambo after her younger half-sister is kidnapped."
While Stallone himself helmed Rambo, he is not directing this one. Instead Last Blood will be directed by Adrian Grunberg, who previously made the Mel Gibson thriller Get the Gringo. The movie doesn't currently have a release date, but it's likely to appear in 2019.
In related news, Stallone returns to the screen next month as Rocky Balboa in Creed 2. The sequel to 2015's successful Rocky spin-off Creed sees Stallone reunite with star Michael B. Jordan, and the latest trailer was released last month.
Epic Games has launched patch 6.02 for Fortnite on PC, Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Switch, and mobile. The update introduces a funky new Limited-Time Mode centered around dancing and a powerful weapon for Battle Royale, while Save The World gets a special new weapon too.
The new Limited-Time Mode for Battle Royale is Disco Domination, which was recently teased in-game. This mode is effectively King is the Hill; players are divided into two teams of 32 and will need to capture specific points--in this case, dance floors--by dancing on them and defending them from enemies. The more friendly players dancing on a floor, the faster it will be captured.
Once your team manages to capture a floor, it will begin filling your team's "dance bar" until either an enemy interrupts or the current storm timer elapses and the storm starts moving. The first team able to fill their dance bar to 100% will be the winner. You can find more details on the mode in the patch notes below.
The new Quad Rocket Launcher, meanwhile, fires four rockets in quick succession. It is available in Epic and Legendary variants, details of which you can also find in the full patch notes below, courtesy of Epic. Along with the full patch notes for the Battle Royale changes, there's a video of the Quad Launcher in action. Head to the Fortnite website to see what's new with Save The World.
Limited Time Mode: Disco Domination
Summary
It's time for the ultimate dance-off. Dance Floors have spawned around the Battle Royale island. Take them over by clearing out any enemies and then dancing to raise a disco ball up from the floor. The team that fills their meter the fastest by capturing and defending the dance floors will win the match!
Mode Details
Two teams of fifty players.
Respawning will be turned on until the third (last) storm circle.
Five dance floors will appear on the map whenever the storm is not moving.
Emoting on a dance floor when no enemies are present will raise a disco ball in the center of the floor, and capture it for your team.
The more friendly players dancing on a floor, the faster it will be captured.
Once a floor is captured, it will begin filling the team's "dance bar" on the HUD, until either an enemy stands on it or the current storm timer ends and the storm begins to move. The first team to fill their dance bar to 100% will win the match.
The dance floors in the later stages of the match fill the bar more quickly, so don't give up if your team is behind!
It is not possible to build on or over the dance floors, but they can be protected by surrounding them with a fort.
Glider redeploy is activated in this mode, press jump while falling to use your glider.
This mode uses 50v50 levels of loot and resources.
Weapons + Items
Quad Launcher
Fire up to four lobbed rockets in quick succession.
Available in Epic and Legendary variants.
80/84 base damage per rocket.
300 unit explosion radius.
Can be found in chests, Supply Drops, and Vending Machines.
The Port-a-Fortress has returned and can be looted in-game.
Port-a-Fortress availability lowered from 2.43% to 1.83%.
Loot drop rate adjustments
Decreased common Pistol drop chance from 5.8% to 5.47%
Increased Epic Bolt-Action Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.33% to 0.42%
Decreased Rare Semi-Auto Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.92% to 0.71%
Increased Epic Heavy Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.33% to 0.4%
Increased Legendary Heavy Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.07% to 0.13%
Decreased Rare Grenade Launcher drop chance from 1.45% to 0.99%
Increased Epic Rocket Launcher drop chance from 0.59% to 0.66%
Increased Legendary Rocket Launcher drop chance from 0.08% to 0.21%
Increased Epic Guided Missile drop chance from 0.11% to 0.2%
Increased Legendary Guided Missile drop chance from 0.03% to 0.05%
Gameplay
Bug Fixes
Removed a change that was inadvertently introduced in v6.01 which caused Bonesy to bark more than was intended.
Fixed an issue that caused moving circles to be closer to the previous safezone than intended.
Performance
Fixed some hitches on Switch caused by blocking loads of UI data.
Increased the texture pool size on Xbox One, which should avoid some issues with blurry textures and improve rendering performance.
Art + Animation
Skull Trooper styles have a visual issue when viewing the Outfit from the Locker.
The Outfit still appears properly in-game.
This issue will be fixed next patch.
For those that haven't jumped into the world of Fortnite, Epic Games has partnered with Warner Bros. for a physical edition of Fortnite. Deep Freeze Bundle will hit the US on November 13 for $30 and the UK on November 16 for £25. You can find out what's included here.
This week will also have more Fortnite challenges to complete, but before they arrive make you can get a little help getting Week 2's challenges done using our guides. The big challenge that will require you to do a little extra leg work involves visiting corrupted areas. Completing these challenges level up your Battle Pass and unlock cosmetics rewards. You can see everything available to acquire in our Season 6 rewards gallery. For help completing other challenges, be sure to check out our full Season 6 challenge roundup.
A new update is now live for Fortnite. Epic has rolled out Patch 6.02 across PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and mobile, bringing not only a new item to Battle Royale, but another limited-time mode to participate in: the recently teased Disco Domination.
As its name suggests--you can see it in the gameplay video above--Disco Domination is all about dancing. Players are divided up into two teams of 32, with the object being to dance on the various dance floors scattered around the island. Epic says five of these will appear when the storm isn't moving; when you come upon one, you'll need to first eliminate other players in the area, then emote on the dance floor to raise a disco ball.
The more teammates you have dancing on the floor, the faster the disco ball will rise. Capturing a dance floor will in turn fill your team's "dance bar," until either an enemy player stands on it or the storm circle begins to encroach on the island. The first team to completely fill their dance bar will win the match.
Epic says Disco Domination uses the same loot and resource levels as other 50v50 modes, but there are some notable wrinkles to be aware of. Players won't be able to build on top of dance floors, although they will be able to surround it with a fort. Additionally, respawns will be enabled until the final storm circle begins moving. You can read more details about the new limited-time mode on Epic's website.
Disco Domination arrives alongside a new weapon called the Quad Launcher, which allows players to quickly fire up to four rockets. Epic also rolled out a new set of Skull Trooper cosmetics. Most of these can be purchased from the in-game store with V-Bucks, but one--the new Ghost Portal Back Bling--can only be earned by completing all of the Skull Trooper challenges. Meanwhile, the next set of weekly Season 6 challenges are slated to arrive on Thursday, October 11.
What was Riot doing for the six months between then and now? Did it go on a killing spree across Malaysia? Was it dormant or hibernating--something the movie never gives any hint that Symbiotes might be capable of? Was it biding its time pretending to be someone's grandma? That blatant plot hole has nothing to do with Venom's general 1990s cheesiness as a character, or the considerable challenge of trying to make a Venom movie without a single reference to Spider-Man. It's just good, old fashioned, avoidable sloppiness.
Don't get me wrong: The lack of Spider-Man does cause problems. Specifically, the entire premise--that Venom chooses to stick around on Earth, attach itself permanently to Eddie Brock, and betray its entire species--doesn't really work in this movie. In the books, Venom's obsession with Spider-Man gives it common purpose with Eddie, and cutting Spidey out of the equation necessitates something take his place as their end goal. The movie tries to get around that by clumsily painting Eddie and Venom as Breakfast Club style lovable "losers" (actual, direct quote: "On my planet, I am kind of a loser, like you"). It's nonsensical, implausible, under-explained, and tonally weird; that line is easily the movie's biggest laugh, but not in a good way.
Venom is surprisingly funny, mostly in the verbal abuse the Symbiote whispers directly into Eddie's brain, usually after Tom Hardy's character does something Venom considers cowardly or embarrassing. When Eddie holds his hands up in surrender to law enforcement, Venom laments that he's "making us look bad;" when Eddie opts to take the elevator rather than jumping from a skyscraper, Venom calls him a "pussy." These moments are deliberately played for laughs, and they land well enough. The bigger problem is why an alien parasite from space talks like a frat bro, or, extrapolating further, why it needs eyes and teeth if its main form is a shapeless, pulsing black goo. These essential curiosities of Venom as a character are never so much as acknowledged, much less explained.
On the plus side, Venom and the other Symbiotes look pretty good in this movie. The CG work is somewhat inconsistent, and it definitely goes through ups and downs when it comes to raw fidelity. But unlike in his other live action incarnations (looking at you, Spider-Man 3), Venom actually looks like Venom here. The alien comes off as both lithe and powerful; it leaps around gracefully, but its hulking form also exudes menace and strength. The visual effect of Venom's vicious visage wrapping itself over Eddie's head is creatively executed, and Symbiote-on-Symbiote fight scenes play out in unexpected ways, with human hosts and alien parasites struggling to remain linked while trying to rip and tear their opponents apart.
Michelle Williams does just fine as Anne, although her attachment to Eddie is really inexplicable, as the two have zero chemistry. Even weirder is the willingness of her new doctor boyfriend (Reid Scott) to administer Eddie multiple MRI screenings, even after Eddie interrupts their fancy lunch date by climbing into a lobster tank (the Symbiote affects him in some truly strange ways).
Riz Ahmed does a great job as the megalomaniacal head of the Life Foundation, totally selling his character's belief that humans will have to mutate themselves using alien parasites if we want to survive climate change. That said, it's a pretty thin motivation, and Dr. Carlton Drake is an utterly one note villain. To be honest, the only character who actually experiences any kind of growth or change is the scientist played by comedian and actress Jenny Slate, who is terrific in this movie--and, unfortunately, underused.
Venom has all the ingredients of a decent superhero movie--10 or 15 years ago. With spotty CGI, poorly drawn characters, tonal inconsistency including forced "edginess" and awkward humor, sidelined female characters, and even cringeworthy licensed musical cues, it feels like a relic from the distant, pre-Marvel Cinematic Universe past. That may in part be attributed to the fact that it's been in production in one form or another since at least 2008. But its problems go way past simply being "old school," and ultimately, Venom lacks the charm, clarity, and ambition superhero fans have come to expect.
When Insidious: The Last Key hit theaters back in January, many believed this to be the final chapter of the horror franchise. It essentially told the origin story of Elisa Rainier (Lin Shaye), something fans of the franchise had been hoping for.
Could there be more story to tell from the Insidious lore, though? While another sequel to the series hasn't been announced, producer Jason Blum admits a return is possible. While speaking to GameSpot to promote the new Halloween, he admitted "there's a very good chance" another Insidious movie will happen at some point.
"What was our tagline on [The Last Key]? Do you remember? The Final Chapter or something," he said. "I'm trying to fight it, I haven't fought it successfully yet, but like I said I think there's a good chance."
Of course, should another Insidious movie happen, there are some questions to ask. Would Leigh Whannell--writer of all four films, director of Insidious: Chapter 3--be involved? Who would take over as director? How much of the franchise's cast would return?
Outside of Shaye's Rainier, the only characters to appear in all four films are Tucker (Angus Sampson) and Specs (Whannell). Surely someone from that trio would have to appear, if only to keep the continuity alive.
Whatever the case, without being announced yet, chances are it'll be some time before another Insidious film comes to pass. As it stands, Blumhouse--the production company behind the franchise--has sequels to Happy Death Day and The Gallows in the works, along with a list of other horror films--including Jordan Peele's next movie Us and M. Night Shyamalan's Glass.
For fans of the franchise, though, Blum saying there's a "good chance" of getting another Insidious movie is great news. Now you just need to wait patiently for it to hopefully happen.
Development on the super-ambitious PC space sim Star Citizen isn't finished yet, but developer Cloud Imperium Games has now released the latest significant update to the ongoing alpha. Alpha 3.3, which launched today as part of the Star Citizen conference CitizenCon, adds a number of intriguing new features and content, including long-awaited "Face over IP" functionality. An evolution of Voice over IP, or VoIP, this new feature allows players to control their character's facial expression with their own using a webcam.
According to Cloud Imperium, this creates a "new level of immersion never before seen in other games, as well as a more traditional voice chat."
Cloud Imperium is working with the company Faceware Tech for Face over IP; they previously worked with Hazelight on the impressive-looking character models in A Way Out, while the company also made a digital version of a young Elton John that looks eerily close to real life.
Cloud Imperium production lead Eric Kieron told GameSpot that the Faceware tech does most of the under-the-hood heavy lifting, so the resource requirement on your PC is not significantly more than VoIP. "FoIP can use pretty much any standard webcam, although the better the camera, the better the results, to track several common 'reference points' on a face and track them in real time--eyes, nose, mouth, lips," Kieron said. "With those reference points serving as a 'map,' we can animate the corresponding pieces of an in-game character relatively easily."
Kieron also pointed out that FoIP is not a direct webcam view of your face, so if you tried to broadcast another body part or something else entirely--this is the internet, of course--it wouldn't work. "If you tried to broadcast something that wasn't a face, it wouldn't register and would just display an un-animated character face," he said.
Alpha 3.3 is a big update. Outside of FoIP, the patch adds a new mission type, "Scramble Race," which challenges players to race across the game's moons, as well as 10 new ships. Also in the update are more ship weapons and armor types. What's more, the update adds enemy AI on planets, so now you'll have to face off against enemy combatants on certain planets in Star Citizen's first-person shooter mode. Cloud Imperium has also added the ability to buy new ships with in-game currency instead of real money, while a backend change adds tech called Object Contain Streaming (OCS) that should help the game run more smoothly.
GameSpot chatted with Kieron about Star Citizen's new FoIP and other key parts of the big Alpha 3.3 update. He is the production lead of Cloud Imperium Games at the company's Los Angeles studio. The full interview follows below, and it also touches on the seemingly endless development of Star Citizen and some of the criticisms that the studio has received. Star Citizen is the most funded crowdfunded project of any kind in history, bringing in more than $194.5 million so far.
You can watch the CitizenCon stream live right here.
GameSpot: One of the coolest new features is Face Over IP. What kind of technical wizardry are you doing that allows for this, and are players going to need a super strong PC and fast connection to use it?
Kieron: Believe it or not, it doesn't. Faceware has done a lot of the heavy-lifting on the back-end and it actually doesn't take up significantly more bandwidth than voice over IP. They're running the machine vision portion of this, where our tech is responsible for the run-time rigging that allows universal playback on any machine. Basically, we map what Faceware tracks, run it on a separate server, and transfer the data into the game.
FoIP can use pretty much any standard webcam (although the better the camera, the better the results) to track several common "reference points" on a face and track them in real time (eyes, nose, mouth, lips, etc.) With those reference points serving as a "map," we can animate the corresponding pieces of an in-game character relatively easily.
This is still an early use of the technology, and we're sure we'll end up with some pretty interesting moments, but I really think it's going to be a lot of fun to play around with. Some of our testers have already been messing around with it and the results are pretty awesome to see.
A look at Star Citizen's new Face over IP tech
How are you going to deal with the griefers who will undoubtedly stream other body parts or other things entirely? Is Face Over IP opt-in?
Face Over IP is not a direct webcam view, instead the character animates while you speak and make expressions, using facial recognition software. If you tried to broadcast something that wasn't a face, it wouldn't register and would just display an un-animated character face.
Do you envision Face Over IP becoming commonplace across games in the future?
Yes, I really do. We're really trying to push the boundaries with this one. I can't wait to see what our community does with it--I really think it'll be a meme factory and that our backers are going to have a lot of fun with it, and at the same time, it will be utilized as a tool to elevate the incredible videos that they've already been making. It's also just a lot of fun and unlike anything I've ever experienced in a video game before, making the player to player interaction more fun and really, more realistic.
Alpha 3.3 is a massive update, but what are the key things players need to know about it?
Alpha 3.3 launches Object Container Streaming, an immense piece of technology touches literally every part of our game. Players should notice performance increases from this, but it's also one of the back-end tech keys that helps unlock the true potential of the Star Citizen Persistent Universe. This tech dynamically tells player computers to "stream" (process and render) individualized "containers" of space. Containers will expand and contract dynamically based on player count, activity, etc.
It's how we ensure that servers don't overload and make a buggy game for everyone, and how we're able to drop huge locations in the game like the Planet Hurston (3.1 million sq. kilometers). Getting OCS into the game has been in the works for years. It allows us to focus on content--we made 4 moons in Hurston in six weeks, 3.0 launched with 3 moons and it took a full year.
Also new is first-person shooter enemy AI. This populates the universe with enemy combatants. Now players will play through our different locales with actual CPU enemies who put them real danger.
"When people give us the amount of trust and support we see everyday, we know we owe it to them to show them how we're spending our time and their money" -- Kieron on Star Citizen's transparent development philosophy
And in-game ship buying with in-game currency. This is a huge, huge deal for us. You can buy an assortment of ships with earned in game currency from missions, trading, player interaction, etc. This is a huge part of the game loop and gives players a choice on how they want to experience Star Citizen. Further, it's a dramatic change to our business model. When you can earn and buy every ship in the game, dedicated players will be able to grind for it all. This is our first iteration of how we're rolling it out and we know it's going to have a huge impact on the in-game economy as well, so expect tweaks, but it's a big difference to how we operate both in the game and as a company.
Generally speaking, Star Citizen catches a lot of flak for being the game that is constantly in development with no end in sight. What's your response to that?
I think it's important to understand context. We've existed as a corporate entity for six years. Development has happened since the beginning, but the size of the team back then was pretty small. When Chris first pitched the game, the community's outpouring of support dictated that he not just make a game, but also create the company, the tools and everything that goes into a project of this size.
Star Citizen did and continues to do a great job of helping propel the movement toward transparent development. The game is developed out in the open and the developers speak frankly about the challenges of making such a big, ambitious game. Why is developing in this way so important to you?
It's everything to us. From the day Chris started this project, we've been committed to delivering our backers and our community a new type of game; the game we've all wanted to play. When people give us the amount of trust and support we see everyday, we know we owe it to them to show them how we're spending our time and their money. We want to give them the best damn space sim ever, and we're able to come to work every day and help make that happen.
We are so directly connected to the community that we can see and react to their feedback in real time. It's incredible fuel, and we find the instant feedback loop incredibly rewarding. We get to make a game that we're confident people want, because they're playing it already!
Anything else players should know?
Hurston and Lorville (our new planet and major city) are coming shortly in an incremental patch between now and the end of the year - we'll also have an end of year 3.4 patch that adds even more content!
Overwatch has kicked off its Halloween Terror 2018 event, and the patch that adds the holiday festivities includes a lot more besides that alone. The full patch notes show changes made to Torbjorn, color blind options, and a lot more.
Halloween Terror 2018 is the headliner of the update, but it also includes the major update for Torbjorn that was announced last month. Torb no longer uses armor packs or the scrap system. His secondary ability instead has changed to "Overload," which works a lot like his previous Ultimate ability. The new Ultimate, called Molten Core, will shoot out pools of magma. Plus his turret build levels have been scrapped entirely, now permanently set to the second level.
"Torbjorn was initially designed to be a specialized hero, intended to be a strong defensive option due to his armor-generating capabilities and ability to control areas with his turret. However, the scrap collecting and Armor Pack mechanics have proven to cause problematic gameplay issues because of their feast or famine nature," reads the patch notes from Blizzard. "To make him more flexible in a wide variety of situations, we've removed the scrap system, made the turret much easier to deploy, replaced the Armor Pack ability with Overload--a powerful self-buff--and transformed Molten Core into a powerful new area denial ultimate ability."
The update also adds a new colorblind option, giving you nine different colorblind options to use for enemy and friendly UI. Those options can be found in Options > Video > Color Blind Options. The highlights for shields and barriers have between tweaked for easier readability, and health bars will become visible if an entity they create (like one of Torb's turrets) deals damage.
Other changes include minor tweaks to Brigitte, Doomfist, McCree, Pharah, Mei, Orisa, and Soldier 76. The timer has also been adjusted for both Assault and Escort maps, giving players less time to setup but more to assemble the team. Besides Torb, Pharah got the most dramatic updates with a lot of changes to her rocket launcher knockback, explosion damage, and attack speed.
"We wanted to increase how responsive Pharah's Rocket Launcher felt, because a full second of recovery between shots made it feel sluggish," Blizzard says. "The overall damage potential is now increased when landing direct hits and decreased slightly when only dealing explosive damage."
All of those changes come alongside Overwatch's big seasonal event, which comes with a bunch of new skins and other cosmetic items to collect. It also includes the limited-time Junkenstein's Revenge mode, which this year comes in both Classic and Endless Night flavors.
A new season of Riverdale means new mysteries, likely a pile of dead bodies, and much more drama than any group of teenagers would be expected to deal with in the real world. Of course, there will also be teens coupling up, a murder trial, Archie Andrews (KJ Apa) potentially going to jail, and a cult to deal with.
GameSpot sat down with showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa to talk about the new season and that cult was a particularly interesting point of discussion. The Farm, as it's called, was first mentioned in Season 1, when Polly (Tiera Skovbye) revealed it's where she and Jason Blossom (Trevor Stines) planned to run away to. It was revealed in Season 2 that the location is actually home to a cult, which is coming to town this year. When it arrives, it won't just be Polly in its clutches, but also Alice (Madchen Amick).
"Alice very rarely does things half-heartedly," Aguirre-Sacasa teased. "When she goes after something it's like she's all in. She's all in on The Farm and yeah, Betty is very skeptical, very scared for her mom. She feels that her mom is kinda being preyed on when she's at her most vulnerable."
Vulnerable is definitely an understatement when it comes to Alice. In Season 2, she was not only conned into believing a stranger was the son she gave up years ago, but she found out her husband Hal (Lochlyn Munro) was the serial killer known as the Black Hood. It's hard to blame her for having her defenses down in such a way that she gets pulled into a cult. Of course, given Betty won't be taking part in the group, chances are this new group will serve as yet another wedge driven between the Cooper women.
However, there is something that might bring them together: the Jones women. It was previously revealed that Gladys and Jellybean Jones--Jughead's (Cole Sprouse) mother and sister, respectively--will appear in Season 3. Gina Gershon will portray Gladys and, as Aguirre-Sacasa tells it, won't be too happy about how entwined in her family's life Alice and Betty have become.
"The gift of a character like Gladys or the potential of a character like Gladys is to cause trouble for Jughead, for FP, for Betty, for Alice, for the mayor, for the Serpents," he said. "Cause, you know, Gladys used to be the Serpent Queen and now Betty's the Serpent Queen. Gladys was with FP and now FP may or may not be with Alice... I don't think Gladys is gonna take a particular liking to the Cooper ladies."
A battle of the biker queens and a cult thrown into the middle of it? Riverdale is shaping up to be somehow even more dramatic than in previous seasons, and that's before you take into account the Gargoyle King that's going to be dropping bodies in the new season. Riverdale returns Wednesday, October 10, at 8 PM ET on The CW.
If you've seen any of the images from Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina or even the first trailer, it's easy to see the series is leaning heavily into a classic horror aesthetic, utilizing everything from vibrant warm colors to practical effects when it comes to creating its beastly creatures.
In order to figure out the show's biggest horror influence, though, fans may not need to look much further than Clive Barker, whose credits include the Hellraiser movie franchise, Candyman, Nightbreed, and a number of other horror classics. When GameSpot, along with a small group of other outlets, took a tour of the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina sets, this was especially evident in the Academy of Unseen Arts--the titular character's witching school.
Lining the walls of the red and black room--which can be reconfigured to stand in for many of the rooms at the academy--are some truly haunting works of art that were painted by Barker, himself. What brought him to the show was production designer Lisa Soper, who reached out about the project.
Some of Barker's paintings on display in the Academy of Unseen Arts set.
Through their discussions, Soper and her team were able to acquire more than 150 of Barker's original paintings to use on a rotating basis within the halls of the academy, giving the series countless ways to recreate the space. His generosity is also something the production designer wanted to thank him for, using a few Easter eggs embedded into the show that keen-eyed fans might discover.
For instance, the flooring and wallpaper in Madam Satan's (Michelle Gomez) home are recreated from designs seen in Hellraiser. This is just one of a number of hidden nods to various horror properties littered throughout the show--some of which GameSpot cannot reveal until Sabrina debuts.
It's clear, though, that Soper and her team, along with showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, are looking in the right places when it comes to their horror inspiration. Hopefully, it translates well when Chilling Adventures of Sabrina premieres October 26 on Netflix.
It was 1991 when TV audiences were first introduced to Cory Matthews (Ben Savage), his family, and his group of friends on Boy Meets World. Yet, somehow, the show--which is now streaming on Hulu--remains as socially relevant as ever, while new audiences of teenagers find it and use it as a coping mechanism for a number of problems the younger generation faces.
That's something the cast of the show is very aware of, and something they took time to speak about during a 25th-anniversary reunion panel at New York Comic Con 2018. Savage was joined by co-stars Danielle Fishel (Topanga) and Will Friedle (Eric) to chat with fans and reminisce about their time on the show--and its spin-off Girl Meets World--when the moderator asked about how it is the show still resonates today, even if the '90s fashion doesn't.
"Michael Jacobs, who was our showrunner and is responsible for 99.9% of the show ideas, if not 100% of the show ideas, he's just very socially-minded himself," Fishel explained. "He's got a lot of opinions, and he's got a lot of beliefs about things that he's staunch on."
It just so happens that a lot of those opinions and beliefs are about speaking to younger people about the ideas they face daily, even if the show wasn't always trying to do that. "I wouldn't necessarily say they were orchestrated, but they are things he knows are universal subject matters--no matter the time period, he knows you are going to watch them," she continued. "Even though it was a kids' show, he wrote a show where kids weren't being talked down to. So you really learned a lot in every episode... I think it'll probably be relevant 20 years from now."
Savage added that the cast took the subject matter of the show very seriously. "The actors were so passionate about their characters," he said. "If you're spending 7 years on a series--and now we've been with these characters for 25 years--you become very protective of your character. Especially when we went into Girl Meets World, we had grown up with these characters."
Of course, Friedle made sure to point out how convenient it was that a lot of the issues explored on the show all seemed to happen to one character--Shawn Hunter (Ryder Strong). "I think Michael also liked to find socially relevant issues and then have them happen to Shawn for a half hour," he joked. "Shawn joined a cult, Shawn drinking, Dad-dying Shawn."
Unfortunately, Strong couldn't be there to defend his character's controversial teenage years, but it was clear that even 25 years later this cast still cherishes the work they did. And while there may not be any new episodes of TV set in the Boy Meets World universe airing right now, the messages put forth by the 158 episodes of the original series--and the 72 installments of Girl Meets World--aren't going to be any less relevant in the years to come.
The Humble Store has been killing it lately with its Humble Monthly subscription. Recent bundles have included blockbuster games like Overwatch and Destiny 2, bundled with a handful of smaller games, all for just $12 per month. Humble has unveiled November's early release titles, and it's already shaping up to be another great month. If you join for just $12, you'll instantly unlock Hitman, Hollow Knight, and 7 Days to Die, with an additional set of mystery games to be revealed on November 2. The only drawback is that you won't know what the mystery games are until it's too late to get the November bundle.
Hitman is the latest game to star the bald, barcoded killer. It came out episodically throughout 2016, but this is the complete, finished game, containing all six sprawling levels that act as murderous sandboxes in which you can get creative with your assassinations. In our 8/10 Hitman review, Brett Todd wrote, "This 2016 take on Hitman is a brilliant game. Expansive level design and nearly unlimited replay value courtesy of so many routes to your assassinations (and so many methods with which to carry them out) make the experience almost completely different each and every time you play."
Hollow Knight is an elegantly crafted side-scrolling game that has you gradually exploring a massive underground environment. You unlock dozens of new abilities as you play, which help you face a variety of challenging bosses. Reviewer Alessandro Barbosa gave the game 9/10 in his Hollow Knight review, writing, "Hollow Knight feels exceptional because so many of its smaller, expertly designed parts fit so well together... But its expansive enemy roster and routinely surprising areas and platforming challenges ensure that your journey through this fallen bug kingdom is one you're unlikely to forget."
Finally, 7 Days to Die is a fitting game to play in October, seeing as it's a survival game that's stuffed full of zombies. But judging by our no-punches-pulled negative review, you might want to save this one for last. They can't all be winners.
You can join Humble Monthly here for $12, and you can cancel at any time. The games you get come in the form of Steam codes, and they're yours to keep and play forever. Other perks include access to all the games in The Trove, 10% off everything in the Humble Store, and access to exclusive deals. Plus, 5% of your payments goes to charity. If you want to assemble a nice collection of Steam games, this is probably the cheapest way to do it.
October has arrived, and this month is packed with some major releases for PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and even 3DS. With the holiday season quickly approaching, some of this year's biggest titles are set to debut soon, including this year's new Call of Duty game, Black Ops 4, and Rockstar's highly anticipated western, Red Dead Redemption 2.
But while those titles may draw the most attention, they are hardly the only noteworthy games coming to each platform this month. Capcom's Blue Bomber Mega Man returns after a long hiatus with Mega Man 11, while the GameCube classic Luigi's Mansion arrives on 3DS in time for Halloween with a few new features in tow, including cooperative multiplayer. Square Enix's cult classic DS RPG, The World Ends With You, is also making a comeback this month when Final Remix launches on Switch.
There are plenty of other games worth checking out this month, as well. You can see all of the biggest releases for each platform in October 2018 below. For a look at all of the other games coming this year, be sure to check out our complete list of game release dates in 2018.
Forza Horizon 4 (Xbox One, PC) -- October 2
The latest installment in Microsoft's open-world driving series, Forza Horizon 4, kicks off this month's releases, arriving on Xbox One and PC on October 2. This time, players will be able to cruise around Great Britain at their leisure in a variety of different vehicles. The biggest new feature, however, is the introduction of seasons, which will cycle every week from the game's launch. Like other first-party Microsoft games, it is also available in the Xbox Game Pass catalog.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey (PS4, Xbox One, PC) -- October 5
Following a brief hiatus, Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed franchise returned last year with Assassin's Creed Origins, a new interpretation of the series that featured an open-world setting and RPG elements. This year's follow-up, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, takes the franchise to Ancient Greece and builds upon these features with an even larger world to explore, romance options, and a much greater emphasis on player choice.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (PS4, Xbox One, PC) -- October 12
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 arrives on PS4, Xbox One, and PC on October 12. Unlike previous installments in the series, this year's entry forgoes a traditional single-player campaign in favor of solo missions centered around each Specialist, and it introduces a number of new modes to the fore, most notably the battle royale-style Blackout. It also launches with an expanded Zombies mode, with three different Zombies episodes available right off the bat.
Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4, Xbox One) -- October 26
Rockstar's highly anticipated Red Dead Redemption 2 closes out a month on October 26. This installment is set 12 years before the events of the first Red Dead Redemption and follows new protagonist Arthur Morgan as he and the Van der Linde gang flee from the law across the American frontier. The game features a sprawling, detailed world that reacts to your actions, along with a wealth of activities to take part in, from hunting and fishing to good, old-fashioned holdups.
Fortnite's weekly challenges are set to refresh on October 11 but, ahead of that, leaks have indicated what players will need to do to grab this week's Battle Stars. Fortnite Intel reports that there will be three challenges in the free section and four in the paid Battle Pass section, as is standard. And it seems developer Epic Games is leaning into the Halloween angle for a couple of them--although not as much as with the new Skull Trooper challenges.
For Week 3, along with asking players to revive five people in different matches and embarking on a multi-stage quest started by opening a chest in Lonely Lodge, you'll need to ring the doorbell of a house with an opponent inside five times, likely as a nod to trick or treating. Currently the game only allows you to interact with doors by opening and closing them, so it's likely a new animation or interaction of some sort will be rolled out when the challenges go live.
Other noteworthy challenges include hitting a player with a tomato from 20 meters away or more and shooting three targets at five different galleries. Take a look at the full list of leaked challenges below. It's important to note that, in the past, leaked challenges haven't been 100 percent accurate, with some challenges being different from early reports.
Free Challenges
Revive a player in different matches (5) -- 5 Battle Stars
Stage 1: Search a chest in Lonely Lodge (1) -- 5 Battle Stars
Ring the doorbell of a house with an opponent inside (5) -- 10 Battle Stars
Battle Pass
Stage 1: Visit Risky Reels and Wailing Woods in a single match (2) -- 1 Battle Star
Hit a player with a Tomato 20m away or more (1000) -- 5 Battle Stars
Shoot 3 targets at different Shooting Galleries (5) -- 10 Battle Stars
Eliminate an opponent in different matches (10) -- 10 Battle Stars
Fortnite Update 6.02 is now available and it introduces the new Disco Domination Limited Time Mode. This gameplay mode tasks players with travelling to dance floors around the map and then getting their boogie on. Busting some moves raises a disco ball over the dance floor, which effectively means it's being captured. Once a floor is captured a progress bar appears and is topped up. As you capture more floors, the bar fills, and the first team to reach 100 percent wins. You can find out more about the mode, as well as the new Quad Launcher weapon, in the Fortnite 6.02 patch notes.
If you're still working on last week's challenges, check out our guide on where to go to complete the Visit Corrupted Areas challenge. And if you've got even more outstanding challenges, head over to our full Season 6 challenge roundup to get help with it all.
The new Mythical Pokemon Meltan has been shrouded in mystery since it first (sort of) appeared in Pokemon Go last month following September's Community Day event, but now we've learned a lot more about it. The Pokemon Company has revealed some new details about Meltan, the most tantalizing of which is a hint at a possible second form for the Hex Nut Pokemon.
The company revealed the details via two new trailers revolving around Meltan. The first is the second installment of the Two Professors video series, featuring Professors Oak and Willow discussing the new information they learned about the Pokemon, including how players can acquire it. The second, which you can watch below, is a promotional trailer showing off a group of Meltan mischievously playing with different items around a house.
While the second trailer doesn't show off any gameplay footage, it does include a teaser that there's more to Meltan than meets the eye. Toward the end of the video, a group of Meltan could be seen huddled together sleeping; the screen then fades, and when it returns we see a silhouette of a hulking Pokemon that likewise has a nut for a head.
We don't yet know anything else about this mysterious Pokemon, so it's still unclear whether it is an evolution of Meltan or simply another form the Pokemon can assume. Many other Legendary Pokemon can take on alternate forms, such as Zygarde from Pokemon X and Y, but it remains to be seen just what this new Pokemon is.
The key to obtaining Meltan involves linking Pokemon Go and the upcoming Let's Go, Pikachu and Let's Go, Eevee games for Switch. If you transfer one Pokemon from the former to the latter, you'll receive a new item called a Mystery Box in Go. When this is activated, you'll have a chance to catch Meltan in the wild and transfer it over to Let's Go. However, the box will only remain open for a certain amount of time, after which you'll need to wait a little while before you can transfer another Pokemon and reopen it.
Fallout 76 is a very different kind of Fallout game, with a new focus on multiplayer across a massive open world. Bethesda is putting it through its paces with a beta test releasing later this month, and you can join in to help explore the wastes and gather technical feedback before its official launch.
When does the beta start?
The beta for Fallout 76 will begin on October 23 on Xbox One, and then expand to PC and PlayStation 4 the following week on October 30. Even if you've received a code, though, you may not necessarily be invited to the first wave. Bethesda plans to start small to stress test the game and expand slowly, so your actual start date may vary.
A separate pre-beta stress test will also run beginning on October 13. That one is exclusive to Xbox One Insiders who have pre-ordered the game, and even then fulfilling those criteria only enters you into the pool of possible participants. Players of this stress test will be under NDA and unlike the beta, game progress will not be saved.
How long will the beta last?
Bethesda has not given a specific end-date for the beta, but it has explained that the servers won't be available 24/7 during the beta period. The studio says it will be running "targeted time frames" to force interested players together at the same time, which in turn will mark a better technical test. The game may be available for 4-8 hours on any given day, with Bethesda making adjustments and fixes during the off periods. This process will repeat until a few days before launch on November 14.
How do I get in?
The beta will be available exclusively for those who pre-order the game across PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. Digital pre-orders will be entered into the pool automatically, while physical pre-orders will receive a code to enter into the accounts page once the beta has gone live on your platform of choice.
It's important to note that this code is not the beta code you enter to access the actual game download. Instead, the pre-order code is the one you enter into Bethesda's system to be put into the pool for code distribution. A separate code, which gives you access to the install, will follow at a later time as Bethesda rolls out its invites.
In the meantime, you can be sure you're prepared by creating a free Bethesda.net login. Also, make sure you have an active Xbox Live Gold or PlayStation Plus membership if you're playing on either console, since those will be required to access the online-only game.
Is the beta the full game?
The Fallout 76 beta is the full experience, and Bethesda says it is currently planning to allow players to carry progress over into the full game. However, console players will need to redownload the launch version, whereas PC players will not need to download a new version upon launch. The beta will be 45 GB.
How do I submit feedback?
Bethesda is inviting feedback across its variety of social media channels.
What else will I get for pre-ordering?
Aside from beta access, pre-ordering will get you 500 Atoms--Fallout 76's in-game currency. Atoms allow you to purchase cosmetic items from the shop. Bethesda has indicated that Atoms will be plentiful, but as we haven't seen the shop or prices yet, it's hard to say just how far 500 Atoms will go.
Overwatch has kicked off its regular annual Halloween promotional event, Halloween Terror. The seasonal event will operate through October 31, and brings with it a bunch of new spooky and kooky skins and other cosmetic items to unlock through loot boxes.
Blizzard has been teasing the event with some unveils of the new skins, including Pharah and Moira, Doomfist, Wrecking Ball and McCree, among others. The new trailer reveals several more like Bride Sombra and Slasher 76. It's all styled after a haunted house, with the viewer's perspective trying to escape the various monsters' clutches. As advertised, the 50 loot box bundle includes a bonus 10 boxes during the promotion, for those of you hunting down skins.
The Halloween Terror event is available across PS4, Xbox One, and PC. In addition to the creepy Halloween-themed costumes, it will explore the next chapter in the story of Dr. Junkenstein--a Halloween version of Junkrat. The addition of Sombra as the Bride implies she'll be joining his ranks in whatever this next piece of the story holds.
This year, Junkenstein's Revenge includes not one but two playable modes: Junkenstein's Revenge (Classic) and Junkenstein's Revenge: Endless Night. It also adds two new heroes for the PvE mode, Tracer and Brigitte.
Nintendo Switch Online is the new subscription service for online play of many Switch games, but Nintendo sweetens the pot a bit by offering an expanding list of NES classics for free. This week three more games join the lineup, along with a special save data for one of the previously included games to help give you a head start.
NES Open Tournament Golf, Solomon's Key, and Super Dodge Ball all join the line-up today. Golf is one of the earliest approximations of the sport in video games. Solomon's Key is a puzzle-platforming game that has you navigate through stages with magical block-creation powers. Super Dodge Ball is an action sports game that pits teams against each other in the classic gym school game, complete with special super-shots and environments that can impact your footing.
Alongside those additions, the update includes a special save data for The Legend of Zelda. It lets you start a new game with the White Sword, Magical Shield, Blue Ring, Power Bracelet, and a bunch of items and rupees. That will give you a big leg-up on the adventure by providing key items early. Nintendo teases that other "special save data" will be coming for other classic games.
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